The Lexmark Genesis, which the company announced today, looks like no other printer I've come across. I received a chance to see this multi-function printer (MFP) up close at a recent press demo. The Genesis's looks are striking: this sleek, black device stands upright on a table or desk, taller than it is wide, with its top swept back at an angle. But its distinctiveness is more than frame-deep: It's the scanner that mostly sets the Genesis apart.

The Genesis scanner's flatbed doesn't lie flat but is tilted at a steep angle. To access it, the front panelwhich houses the MFP's 4.3-inch touch screenswings outward. (Lexmark noted that the lid and its hinges are particularly heavy-duty to protect the panel from damagethe lid looked prone when open.) And the scanning mechanism, which Lexmark has termed Flash Scan, is itself unusual.

A typical flatbed scanner has a CCD sensor on a movable carriage that's underneath the glass on which the face-down document, lit from below by lamps (usually LED), is set. As the carriage moves beneath the glass, the sensor records the document's brightness levels at different locations. (Many scanners use three sensors to record the levels in red, green, and blue, or use filters for the same purpose.)

The Genesis, however, "scans" (or rather shoots) the whole image in one fell swoop with a 10-megapixel CMOS sensor (essentially a digital camera), or actually in several swoops as it shoots in each of the 3 colors. This makes it a lot faster than typical MFP scanners. Lexmark claims a scanning speed of 3 seconds per one-page document, which is in line with what I observed.

I saw it scan multiple small images at once and save each to a separate file. It can scan to e-mailthe Lexmark rep scanned an image, and soon it arrived as an e-mail attachment on his iPhone.

There's more to the Genesis than its scanning. It's a four-function (print/copy/fax/scan) MFP that can be connected via 802.11b/g/n WiFi. It has a rated print speed of up to 33 pages per minute (ppm) in black and 30 ppm in color. It can also connect directly to the Web, using Lexmark's downloadable SmartSolutions Web apps.

I came away feeling impressed with this device, for its sleek and novel looks, its versatility, and its different approach to scanning. But first impressions aren't always accurate. I look forward to getting a Genesis into our labs and seeing how it stands up to our testing.

About the Author

As Analyst for printers, scanners, and projectors, Tony Hoffman tests and reviews these products and provides news coverage for these categories. Tony has worked at PC Magazine since 2004, first as a Staff Editor, then as Reviews Editor, and more recently as Managing Editor for the printers, scanners, and projectors team.
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